Overtime???

[browndog]

I really need some input regarding overtime in the ED.

 

How many hours per month (if any) do you typically work overtime? Is this paid? If so, is it paid at straight time or at a premium rate? Finally, is it considered standard business practice to be paid overtime if you are simply finishing up on some charting after your shift ends, or only if you are actively seeing patients.

 

Thank you.

[RPa695]

Hello,

I'm not working yet, but I have been hired at an ED and hopefully will begin in January.

I will be paid by the hour, with time and half for overtime. So anything over 40 hours I will receive that pay.

My schedule is 5 either 8 or 9 hours shifts per week, so I think it's safe to assume I'll work about 45 hours a week, so 5 hours of overtime.

This also applies to if I pick up someone else's shift and end up working 6 shifts, then that whole shift I will be paid time and half.

 

However, most people I graduated with seem to be paid a salary and will get paid that amount whether they work over 40 or less than 40 hours a week.

[meaux]

Im not sure about others but this is the way it worked for me. By the way ea state has their own regulation on what is considered OT. some states it is considered >8 hrs/day other >40 hrs/wk. In the last state I worked it was 40 hrs a wk. work was considered to be Sun-Sat. We were pretty short staffed for a period of 4 mos. 4 12 hour shifts x 7 days = 28 shifts with 4 FT PAs and 1 PT. you can do the math there. Quality of life went down, but the bank acct went North. If I was there just finishing up documentation and ran +/- 30min over I didnt worry about it because I wouldnt worry if I left a little early on another shift should it be the case. Im in VA now and its still the same as WA, all OT is time 1/2 and I would be leary if the hiring group didnt consider this to be the case, otherwise you might as well be salary, no?

[meaux]

Hello,

My schedule is 5 either 8 or 9 hours shifts per week, so I think it's safe to assume I'll work about 45 hours a week, so 5 hours of overtime.

This also applies to if I pick up someone else's shift and end up working 6 shifts, then that whole shift I will be paid time and half.

 

Congrats on starting your new gig. Here is my advise to you, no offense. I would be extremely cautious working 5 days in a row, let alone 6! 3 in a row in the ED is plenty. Again just my opinion, but Ive been solely in the ED for nearly 3 years now.

[primadonna22274]

Never paid OT or holiday pay in the ED. Perhaps this is because it's in SC. Always salaried/exempt in private practice/FM so never paid OT there either but I would get comp time if earned (in OR).

[EMEDPA]

currently don't get OT (probably work 5-15 hrs/mo) but have worked at places that did 1.5x for hrs> 8/day or 40/week. that was an hmo setting.

[DizzyJ]

A group of NP's and PA's sued for overtime a few years back and won. There is a thread on here about it somewhere. So, if you are hourly and work over 40hours, you should get 1.5 rate. I work 3 12's and rarely stay over. If I do, then I get paid for that time. When I pick up an extra shift and hit 40, it's all 1.5 rate after that. My group stopped paying physicians for staying over their scheduled hours earlier this year. They have given back pay for some of them however.

[browndog]

Thanks everyone for the replies. I think that my original post was poorly worded. Let me try again. I really do want input on this.

 

 

We have transitioned into a new PDOC system which has created enormous inefficiencies in documentation and has resulted in decreased through put in our fast track. In an effort to improve through put all of the MLPs have been resorting to skeleton charting (HPI and Dispo mainly) to get the patients in and out. We then complete the chart (PMH, ROS, PE, MDM, Procedures) after the shift. This has created, for me, an average of 8 hours per month in overtime (I am on the low end overtime-wise).

 

We recieved an email today stating that overtime is no longer acceptable (as it relates to our inefficiencies). Any overtime we desire must be approved by a partner "real time" that shift. Frankly, I am not concerned about getting 1.5x hourly rate. I have given up on that. I simply want to get paid my standard hourly rate for any and all hours that I work. I would not expect them to pay me for not working. Conversely, I do not intend to work without pay.

 

My thinking is that the partners are so focused on cost that they are missing the big picture. If we document thoroughly in this new atrocious system, we will see less patients, hand off more patients, decrease through put, increase wait times, decrease Press Ganey scores, decrease reimbursements, decrease revenue for the partners.

 

I know that the increase in revenue produced (increase in patients seen per shift) by documenting after the shift WAY outwieghs the hourly rate that they are paying us to document. But we were told today that we are expected to document after the shift without the benefit of being paid. It is "part of the job".

 

What do you guys think......

[primadonna22274]

If you are hired hourly and paid hourly, do not work for free.

Do your charts (miserably) as you see patients and let them get the hint.

Worked with such a miserable new EHR this past weekend--in the 13 hr I was there I barely saw 30 pts where I could have done 50 comfortably in the old system. Never could have handled my old UC days of 70 with this behemoth. Impossible to do a chart in <5 min.

It's not Medhost is it?

Awful, awful, awful.

[EMEDPA]

I've decided to work as though I am not on production even though I am. rushing to see another dental pain or whip through charts just to make a few more bucks at the expense of bad documentation just isn't worth it. I now charge for all my time by the clock and get paid for it but my "production/hr") has dipped a bit because I am not working off the clock anymore. I think I give better care and chart better when I resign myself to thinking of production as nice but not a part of my salary. many of my colleagues write crappy charts and see 5 pts/hr but the next day if they come back you can't tell what happened in the prior workup. "consulted cardiology" is not ok. who did you talk to? what did they say?

[RPa695]

Congrats on starting your new gig. Here is my advise to you, no offense. I would be extremely cautious working 5 days in a row, let alone 6! 3 in a row in the ED is plenty. Again just my opinion, but Ive been solely in the ED for nearly 3 years now.

 

 

Thanks for the advice. There's not much I can do to change the shifts so I'm hoping it won't be too bad... Thankfully the shifts are only 8 hours and I will be working in the fast track which will make things better I think. I think I would end up working 6 shifts a week if it's absolutely necessary.

 

The ED is also pretty low volume (14 patients there right now according to the website). I guess I'll see how it goes here pretty soon!

[ToBeWhole]

I don't get overtime under my contract. I get a monthly bonus for every shift I work over 120 hours a month.

 

 

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[jen0508]

we dont get paid overtime for staying late... we are on salary and dont clock in and out. On days that are really slow we can come in late (or leave early) since we are not paid by the hour, as long as the supervising physician is kind enough to call us and let us kno or let us kno we can leave early (most do). On normal days i usually leave an hour late, but i am still fairly new and get behind on charting, most of the seasoned PAs leave on time.